Great Pacific Garbage Patch Essay

Everything that we throw into the environment as waste will always come back to haunt us in a larger form than we ever expected. With the level of consumerism that the society today have enjoyed because of the goods available in the market today, wastes also abound and without proper disposal mechanisms, it has led to the degradation of the environment. More so, the convenience of producing commodities in the form of plastic has led more and more wastes to be sent out in the environment. A great number of which has found their way into the oceans to become what is now termed as “The Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

” It is noted for its relatively large size, the contents it has, and the area it has occupied. The Great Garbage Patch is an accumulation of plastic non-biodegradable wastes which have been dumped in the ocean or found its way to the sea from the land. The bottom line is that there is a great amount of garbage found in the ocean that is brought about by human activities. It affects marine life and will later on impact on the health of human beings. Interestingly, it has been noted that the ratio of plastic wastes in the water to that of sea life is 6 is to 1 (“The Great Garbage Patch,” n. d. ).

In light of this information, it is no longer a surprising fact that there are indeed a significant volume of plastics that have been accumulated in the ocean because of the amount of materials dumped in it. The area which this garbage occupies is around 500 nautical miles from the coast of California up to Japan (Jacquot, 2008). The impact it has over the quality of life in the ocean is devastating as it grew more than the zooplankton and affects life within it (Kostigen, 2008). It is indeed proven that the Great Pacific Garbage Patch has taken over a large area of the ocean.

Knowledge of this term leads people to an informed judgment next time plastics are used and results to a heightened consciousness in terms of their behavior. Moreover, private organizations should adhere to the use of biodegradable plastic or a similar technology in order to help the environment. In the future, the efforts of the individuals and organizations will greatly help in saving the environment.

References

Jacquote, J. (2008). The Great Pacific Garbage Patch: “Out of sight, of out of mind. ” Retrieved March 9, 2009, from http://www. treehugger.com/files/2008/02/great_pacific_garbage_patch. php. This site provides scientific and factual information regarding the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Kostigen, T. (2008). The world’s largest dump: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Retrieved March 9, 2009, from http://discovermagazine. com/2008/jul/10-the-worlds-largest-dump. It is an account of the author’s experience in relation to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The great garbage patch. (n. d. ). Retrieved March 9, 2009 from http://www. greatgarbagepatch. org/. It basically provides information in order to persuade the readers to take action.

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